Biomaterial Database

Has the decline in dental caries been halted? Changes in caries prevalence amongst 6- and 12-year-old children in Friesland, 1973-1988. 1990

J E Frencken, and H Kalsbeek, and G H Verrips

Department of Community Dental Health and Epidemiology, TNO Institute of Preventive Health Care, Leiden, The Netherlands.

In 1973, 1976, 1979, 1982 and 1988 caries investigations were carried out amongst 6- and 12-year-old primary schoolchildren to study the effectiveness of a dental health campaign begun in 1973. This campaign and the school dental health services were stopped in 1985. In all the years, except 1988, radiographs formed part of the caries examination. The percentage of 6-year olds with a caries-free dentition increased from 4 per cent in 1973 to 47 per cent in 1988, and for 12-year olds from 0 per cent in 1973 to 45 per cent in 1988. The mean dmfs score decreased steeply from 14.4 in 1973 to 3.8 in 1982 and rose slightly to 4.0 in 1988. This latter score was 4.6 if a correction for the X-ray effect were applied. The mean DMFS score in 12-year olds showed a constant decline, from 13.7 in 1973 to 2.0 in 1988. The half in the decline of caries in the deciduous dentition of these 6-year-old cohorts is regarded as a warning that caries may be on the increase again in this part of The Netherlands. Regular monitoring is therefore required. Explanations for this halt in the decline of caries are discussed.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D008297	Male		Males
D009426	Netherlands	Country located in EUROPE. It is bordered by the NORTH SEA, BELGIUM, and GERMANY. Constituent areas are Aruba, Curacao, and Sint Maarten, formerly included in the NETHERLANDS ANTILLES.	Holland,Kingdom of the Netherlands
D002648	Child	A person 6 to 12 years of age. An individual 2 to 5 years old is CHILD, PRESCHOOL.	Children
D003731	Dental Caries	Localized destruction of the tooth surface initiated by decalcification of the enamel followed by enzymatic lysis of organic structures and leading to cavity formation. If left unchecked, the cavity may penetrate the enamel and dentin and reach the pulp.	Caries, Dental,Carious Lesions,Dental Cavities,Dental Cavity,Dental Decay,Dental White Spots,Carious Dentin,Decay, Dental,Dental White Spot,White Spot, Dental,White Spots, Dental,Carious Dentins,Carious Lesion,Cavities, Dental,Cavity, Dental,Dentin, Carious,Dentins, Carious,Lesion, Carious,Lesions, Carious,Spot, Dental White,Spots, Dental White
D003793	Dental Restoration, Permanent	A restoration designed to remain in service for not less than 20 to 30 years, usually made of gold casting, cohesive gold, or amalgam. (Jablonski, Dictionary of Dentistry, 1992)	Dental Fillings, Permanent,Dental Filling, Permanent,Dental Permanent Filling,Dental Permanent Fillings,Dental Restorations, Permanent,Filling, Dental Permanent,Filling, Permanent Dental,Fillings, Dental Permanent,Fillings, Permanent Dental,Permanent Dental Filling,Permanent Dental Fillings,Permanent Dental Restoration,Permanent Dental Restorations,Permanent Filling, Dental,Permanent Fillings, Dental,Restoration, Permanent Dental,Restorations, Permanent Dental
D004245	DMF Index	"Decayed, missing and filled teeth," a routinely used statistical concept in dentistry.	Decayed, Missing, and Filled Teeth,DMF Indexes,DMF Indexe,DMF Indices,Index, DMF,Indexe, DMF,Indexes, DMF,Indices, DMF
D005260	Female		Females
D006801	Humans	Members of the species Homo sapiens.	Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D014094	Tooth, Deciduous	The teeth of the first dentition, which are shed and replaced by the permanent teeth.	Primary Tooth,Tooth, Primary,Baby Teeth,Baby Tooth,Dentition, Deciduous,Dentition, Primary,Milk Teeth,Milk Tooth,Primary Teeth,Teeth, Deciduous,Teeth, Primary,Deciduous Dentition,Deciduous Dentitions,Deciduous Teeth,Deciduous Tooth,Dentitions, Deciduous,Dentitions, Primary,Primary Dentition,Primary Dentitions,Teeth, Baby,Teeth, Milk,Tooth, Baby,Tooth, Milk
D015995	Prevalence	The total number of cases of a given disease in a specified population at a designated time. It is differentiated from INCIDENCE, which refers to the number of new cases in the population at a given time.	Period Prevalence,Point Prevalence,Period Prevalences,Point Prevalences,Prevalence, Period,Prevalence, Point,Prevalences